On \(\text{PSL}(2,q)\) as a totally irregular collineation group (Q1319970)

Let \(\pi\) be a finite projective plane of order \(n\). A collineation group \(G\) of \(\pi\) is called totally irregular if each point of \(\pi\) is fixed under a nontrivial element of \(G\). The nonabelian finite simple groups \(G\) which can occur as totally irregular collineation groups containing an involutorial perspectivity are known. In the paper under review the authors consider a group \(G \simeq PSL(2,q)\) acting on \(\pi\) as a totally irregular collineation group containing an involutory homology where \(q\) is a power of the prime number \(p\). The cases \(q \leq 5\) are already done by the first author in a previous paper. In the general case \(q>3\) it is shown that \(G\) fixes neither a point nor a line. The further analysis is restricted to the case \(q \equiv 1 \bmod 4\). It is shown that \(\pi\) is desarguesian with order \(n=q\) if one of the following cases holds: 1) \(5<q \neq 9\) and the order of the stabilizer of any point is either even or divisible by \(p\) or 2) \(5<q \neq 9\) and \(n \not \equiv 0\), \(1 \bmod (q+1)/2\). In the above cases with \(q=5\) it is proved that \(\pi\) is desarguesian with some order \(n \in\{5,9,11\}\). The exceptional case \(q=9\) needs a special treatment. The possible values for \(n\) in the case \(q=9\) are \(n \in \{9,19,25,31,61\}\).